The Metis eLibrary:
a system for learning and research
What is the Metis eLibrary?
The Metis eLibrary is an information system designed to meet the needs and demands of schools. The system was created in 2019, by an experienced librarian and educator, to empower learners and educators. Instead of simply being a platform for digital resources, the Metis eLibrary is designed to support curriculums and qualifications.
The eLibrary is devised to be used as a tool to support the curriculum-based learning of students and their acquisition of academic skills. One strength of the eLibrary is that it allows staff and students to undertake independent learning to extend and reinforce the curriculum. The ability to research areas, outside of the classroom and the confines of the school day, fosters a culture of intellectual curiosity. To meet this purpose the Metis eLibrary provides an integral solution for creating a digital super curriculum for schools.
The eLibrary is an important resource to support and encourage students to acquire the skills they need in tertiary education and for working in a knowledge economy. Metis provides the facility for schools to create and curate a digital super curriculum to support the preparation of their students for university or vocational courses. The eLibrary and the super curriculum allow schools to maintain the ability to provide an adaptable, year-round solution to support and extend their students.
We provide a product that is flexible and easy to use for students and staff. The eLibrary has been carefully developed to allow librarians and administrators to manage their digital resources with ease. Students are provided with a system that allows them to develop their information literacy skills. Teachers and librarians can provide support to learners outside of the confines of the physical library.
Metis eLibrary is designed to allow easy access to digital resources using a Single Sign-on (SSO). We already connect schools using Google and Microsoft 365 and integrate the eLibrary with Google Classroom and Microsoft Classroom.
Five years after the Metis eLibrary was initially released we are proud to continue to develop a product meet the needs of schools to provide high quality solutions by listening and learning from our clients.
How does Metis eLibrary support learning and research in schools?
The eLibrary provides the locus point for learning and research in and out of the classroom. It can be accessed any time or any place by staff and students. The flexibility of the eLibrary allows students to learn, reinforce their learning and extend their knowledge. At the most basic level it is another tool for learning but it is also used to extend enquiring minds.
Resources can be pinned and pushed out to specific years/forms/classes quickly and easily making access to material relevant to a lesson or scheme of work.
Digital resources can be easily search for using the Resource Finder based on subjects, qualifications/examinations or age appropriateness. The powerful basic search and advanced search facilities allow users to find relevant material easily.
The Metis eLibrary removes the weaknesses of generalised searches on the web and it allows students and teachers to access high quality information with confidence. Schools using the eLibrary can create an educational space which embraces the realities of living and learning in a knowledge economy.
An optional element of the eLibrary is the Scholar Tool. The Scholar Tool supports students learning about and acquiring academic skills. Students can learn how to create references, bibliographies, captions and tables for their coursework.
Materials explaining research, study and academic skills can integrated directly into the library. This facility is able to be tailored to meet the individual needs of a school and its students.
Building a super curriculum for your school with the Metis eLibrary
The eLibrary provides the integral facility to create a super curriculum to support activities beyond the classroom.
Designed with flexibility in mind the school can curate a huge bank of resources to meet the needs of its students. As a component of the eLibrary. it is possible for students to move easily between the classroom and other formal learning opportunities into a space where aspirations and learning are almost limitless.
The super curriculum allows a school to offer many more opportunities to their students. Parents can access this area of the eLibrary too so that they can support children in the home environment.
Supporting your STEM or STEAM programmes
The structure of the Metis eLibrary allows schools to build a digital resource collection that embeds your STEM or STEAM programme within the digital world. Our system helps encourage a cross-disciplinary approach to inquiry about science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics.
The Metis eLibrary and international education
The eLibrary supports blended learning and embeds resources to enable a smooth transition between different educational programmes.
We offer detailed consultations with all our schools to help identify what their digital and educational needs. Once these areas have been identified, further support is offered to make sure that the resources and the release of the eLibrary is smooth and successful.
Enrichening teaching and learning using your school’s heritage
With over 25 years of experience of working with schools’ and their heritage, the eLibrary has been designed to allow digitised resources to be easily integrated into its collections. The wealth of material that as school may have in its archives can form relevant and fascinating resources to enhance teaching is many subjects.
The use of documentary evidence and material culture enlivens the study of history in a local and international context. Using the Metis eLibrary as a gallery for a school’s or local area’s heritage offers additional ways for teachers, classes and students to increase their knowledge.
The use of a school’s heritage assets is a powerful way to draw attention to the relevance of the past and its impact on our contemporary understanding of the world.
Freedom to learn
The Metis eLibrary was created as an antidote to students learning within a silo of a physical or digital classroom. It helps prevent the over reliance on ‘spoon feeding’ students and encourages intellectual curiosity. The eLibrary is a system that encourages staff to share their resources openly and demonstrates a whole school commitment to the importance of knowledge, skills and understanding.
We live in a knowledge-based economy, and it is vital that students learn where and how to access existing knowledge. Digital skills are not just limited to navigating what AI offers outside of the ‘pay wall’. The eLibrary is design to be a tool that supports learning and encourages the intellectually curious no matter what students are specifically studying in the classroom. In a world where flawed knowledge-claims and disinformation is growing the eLibrary allows schools to provide a learning environment that encourages analytical thinking, collaboration and creativity.
Support for schools, their leaders and staff
The SDS Metis team are committed to providing support and advice to all their clients. We believe in tailoring our advice to enable each school or educational group to find the right solution for their needs.
Our success in working with schools over the last 25 years help ensure that staff and students are able taking the fullest advantage of the eLibrary. Training will be provided to library and teaching staff and regular update/discussion sessions will be offered to your school. We can suggest ways in which staff, including senior leadership teams, heads of department and librarians, can optimise the educational value of the Metis eLibrary.
Schools interested in the Metis eLibrary can organise a demonstration and initial meeting by following contacting us.
Need more information?
For a free, no-obligation demonstration and quotation for a bespoke Metis eLibrary system for your school, call us on 01425 621262 or fill in the form on the Contact us page.